Nigeria: Suspected Boko Haram Attacks Kill at Least 24

Two suspected Boko Haram attacks killed at least 24 people in northeast Nigeria on Monday (Aug. 31). Reuters reports that assailants attacked the villages of Kolori and Ba’ana Imam on horseback, opening fire and throwing explosives.

Seventeen people were killed in Kolori and seven were killed in Ba’ana Imam.

The attack on horseback was unusual for Boko Haram, but authorities believe the militant group was responsible.

According to an unnamed military source, telephone networks are poor in the area where the attacks occurred. News of the attacks did not reach authorities until Tuesday evening, when civilians who escaped the attacks reached the town of Biu.

Usman Buka, a member of a local vigilante group said, "I was told Boko Haram people came on horses, firing into houses and at fleeing villagers.”

"They killed 17 people, while seven people were injured. They went to Ba'ana Imam, a few kilometers (miles) away, and killed seven people.”

Over 700 people have been killed in Boko Haram attacks since Muhammadu Buhari became the new Nigerian president on May 29. Buhari has vowed to eliminate the terrorist group, and is currently developing an 8,700-member regional army to fight Boko Haram.